A lot of great anime has to do with fighting. It's difficult to create a compelling story unless people are deeply committed to something, and there's no better way to show you're serious about something than killing or dying over it. As a result, almost all good stories involve violence. Out of the 188 top anime time has given us, 142 include violence in some level or form.
The only non-violent top ranking anime are:
14. Kanon
17. Bakuman
19. K-On!
27. Da Capo
28. Papa no Iukoto wo Kikinasai
31. Saki
32. Love Live!
33. Maria-sama ga Miteru
35. Boku ha Tomodachi ga Sukunai
36. Ef
40. The Idolm@ster
43. Hanasaku Iroha
52. Non Non Biyori
58. Hibike! Euphonium
64. Ano Hi Mita Hana no Namae o Bokutachi wa Mada Shiranai
67. Kiki's Delivery Service
68. Ro-Kyu-Bu!
77. Tari Tari
78. Kin-iro Mosaic
79. Tokyo Magnitude 8.0
91. Hikaru no Go
97. Chihayafuru
106. Usagi Drop
107. New Game
108. BanG Dream!
109. Sakura Trick
110. Natsuiro Kiseki
117. Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-kun
121. Lucky Star
124. Mikakunin de Shinkoukei
132. Hyouka
133. Wake Up, Girls!
135. Azumanga Daioh
136. Bimbou Shimai Monogatari
139. Seitokai no Ichizon
144. Kimi ni Todoke
145. Amagami SS
152. Yama no Susume
153. Hanayamata
155. Locodol
162. Sore ga Seiyuu!
164. H2
170. Ginga E Kickoff
172. Tamayura
178. Girlish Number
183. Ao Haru Ride
So, everyone likes to use violence as a tool to spice things up. 142/188 = 76% of anime relies on this trick.
But here's where things get tricky. Violence is an all-purpose panacea that makes any show good, but a lot of authors abuse this advantage by pretending to be violent while not really being violent. The remaining anime can be broken down into four groups --
1. Anime that endorses killing as an act of private gain, or malice towards the victim.
2. Anime that endorses killing but only in self defense or other legal circumstances.
3. Anime that is wishy-washy about violence, always trying to have it both ways.
4. Anime that features violence but constantly condemns it.
I prefer violent anime to be honest with itself (and much more realistic), and therefore I like the four groups more, all else being equal, when the show belongs to category 1 > 2 > 3 > 4. Generally speaking, if a violent anime is not in the first category, I consider it to be the victim of censorship, because there's no natural way a violent show would not always be in the first category. Only tortured efforts can keep violence toned down into one of the lesser categories, things no author would do unless under duress.
Category 1 Violent Anime:
3. Code Geass
4. Bake-(etc)-monogatari
6. Fate/Etc
7. Sword Art Online
13. Higurashi/Umineko no naku koro ni
15. Dragon Ball
18. Seikai no Monshou/Senki/Danshou
37. Katanagatari
44. Angel Beats
47. Rurouni Kenshin
48. Utawarerumono
51. Grisaia no Kajitsu/Meikyuu/Rakuen
55. Scrapped Princess
56. Berserk
62. High School of the Dead
71. Cowboy Bebop
72. Evangelion
92. Mononoke Hime
95. School Days
96. Valvrave the Liberator
98. Samurai Champloo
99. Akame ga Kill!
100. Akatsuki no Yona
101. Steins;Gate
103. Shingeki no Kyojin
105. Youjo Senki
113. Guyver
130. Gate
147. Schwarzesmarken
151. Btooom!
154. Hunter x Hunter
166. Tears to Tiara
168. Fatal Fury
175. Death Note
179. Shuumatsu no Izetta
181. 12 Kingdoms
187. RG Veda
37/142 = 26% of violent anime
Category 2 Violent Anime:
16. Bleach
21. Full Metal Panic!
22. Inuyasha
29. Shinsekai Yori
38. Haruhi Suzumiya
46. Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann
53. Basilisk
59. Macross
69. Hai to Gensou no Grimgar
70. Sailor Moon
73. Record of Lodoss War
74. Puella Magi Madoka Magica
82. Akaneiro ni Somaru Saka
88. Claymore
89. Shakugan no Shana
114. Broken Blade
115. Koutetsujou no Kabaneri
118. Baccano/Durarara
126. Soul Eater
127. Valkyria Chronicles
128. Zero no Tsukaima
140. Bastard!
148. Martian Succesor Nadesico
149. Gosick
160. Kuromukuro
180. Ghost in the Shell
182. Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind
184. Mahoromatic
188. Alien Nine
29/142 = 20% of violent anime
Category 3 Violent Anime:
1. Pretty Cure
2. Clannad
5. Naruto
8. Fairy Tail
9. Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha
10. Cross Game
11. One Piece
12. Little Busters!
20. To Aru Majutsu no Index/Kagaku no Railgun
23. Ranma 1/2
24. Oreimo
25. Working!
26. Major
30. Hayate no Gotoku
34. World of Witches
39. Girls und Panzer
41. The World God Only Knows
42. Ojamajo Doremi
45. Kobato
49. Toradora!
50. Shirobako
57. Yuuki Yuuna wa Yuusha de Aru
60. Majikoi
61. Rocket Girls
63. Vividred Operation
65. AKB0048
66. Angelic Layer
75. Shukufuku no Campanella
76. Summer Wars
81. Tales of 'x'
83. Vandread
84. Outbreak Company
85. Baka to Test to Shoukanjuu
86. Prince of Tennis
87. To Love ru
93. Kyoukai no Rinne
102. Rewrite
111. Kitakubu Katsudou Kiroku
112. To Heart
116. History's Strongest Disciple Kenichi
119. Yuru Yuri
120. Galaxy Angel
122. Spirited Away
123. Sora no Otoshimono
125. No Game No Life
129. Joukamachi no Dandelion
131. Flame of Recca
134. Nichijou
137. Spice and Wolf
138. Card Captor Sakura
141. Shamanic Princess
142. Hataraku Maou-sama!
146. Zettai Bouei Leviathan
150. Yu Yu Hakusho
156. Miyuki
157. Juuou Mujin no Fafnir
158. Oreshura
159. Negima
163. Touch
165. Amagi Brilliant Park
169. Atelier Escha & Logy
171. Happiness!
173. Assassination Classroom
176. Gokukoku no Brynhildr
177. Boku Dake ga Inai Machi
185. Shinryaku! Ika Musume
186. Dimension W
67/142 = 47% of violent anime
Category 4 Violent Anime:
54. Sora no Woto
80. Uuchuu no Stellvia
90. Air
94. Aishiteru ze Baby
104. Kokoro Toshokan
143. Grave of the Fireflies
161. Planetarian
167. Battle Athletes
174. Myself;Yourself
9/142 = 6% of violent anime
I don't like the pacifist shows because calling for non-violence doesn't work, it just leaves you vulnerable to those who are more aggressive. But at least they're consistent. They don't glorify violence in order to get patronage while simultaneously pretending violence doesn't mean killing.
The worst sin in my mind is Category 3, with a whopping 47% of all violent shows, which uses violence while simultaneously sanctimoniously being prudes, liars and hypocrites about what violence actually means. This is the category of maximum censorship, where you can tell if the authors had a free hand the story would be completely different.
Category 2 consists of pussies who don't want to get their hands dirty. 20% of violent anime is all about wanting to be violent, but being too afraid to use it for anything but self-defense, law enforcement or the like. Again, the authors are using the bloodthirst of the audience while simultaneously denying its right to exist. At least it admits that violence kills, though, which is a step up from category 3.
Category 1 is the good stuff. People have their own personal agendas and they're willing to kill over them. Whether it is hating or despising a particular person or group and thus being willing to off them, or just having a dream that's worth killing over, these people are the real deal. They're unbound by any law except their own personal morality and reason, and they will happily and unrepentantly violate other people's laws or moralities, even the common sense of today's world. Nietzschean Supermen. Taboo breakers. Free thinkers. At least this category has a surprisingly high ratio of 26% of all violent shows. Not all anime is censored and not all writers are pussies/hypocrites. Some are genuinely willing to strike their own path.
Category 1, pro-murder stories constitute 37/188 great anime as a whole = 20%, despite being a relatively rare occurrence in terms of what shows are generally made for the consumer audience. There's no easier way to become a great anime than to simply endorse killing. There's not nearly enough pro-murder anime in this world, but 37 is at least a good start. There's also more than enough wishy-washy shows. We don't need a single more pathetic attempt to simulate violence without ever actually revealing its core nature/purpose.
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